IT Security Real, Effective And Continuous Monitoring Is Essential

In a world that is increasingly exposed to IT threats, IT support providers need to be more proactive in their defense and not wait for the problem to come. Preventive work must be carried out in order to avoid the appearance of new flaws.

A few years ago, it was very common to see, within the technology park of different companies, a server hacked because of security breaches, passwords too weak for example. A hacker could easily use a malicious program to steal confidential data.

Today, the user is at the heart of the security policy, but unfortunately many companies still refuse to apply essential security rules. They do not have managed antivirus protection or firewalls. Their operating system is sometimes even obsolete. Even worse, some do not even know what a computer security policy is. It is because of this lack of involvement that a single click is enough today to lose important data, whether stored on servers or workstations.

Every day in companies, simple and seemingly harmless actions change the use of technology, and often without anyone realizing it. There are countless examples, such as installing unauthorized programs or programs from unidentified publishers, opening attachments, or visiting risky websites. These entry points are sufficient to make a system vulnerable to all kinds of threats, including malware or spyware, full data encryption, and specific equipment failures. In most cases, the goal is to recover bank details and the risk is sometimes compounded by the extreme naivety of many users in the use of technology and data protection.

IT service providers must also be more proactive. They do not have to wait for the problem to happen. Preventive work must be carried out in order to avoid the appearance of new flaws. To achieve this, it becomes imperative to adopt real-time monitoring tools, but also to implement other solutions, such as managed antivirus protection, Internet access control tools, regular monitoring, and filters for emails obviously a good old backup.
Fortunately, the software market is packed full of tools to meet the diverse needs of businesses. But it is important to emphasize that even if all these technological defenses are put in place, continuous monitoring will only be really effective if a professional takes full responsibility for it. For large companies, this is not a problem because they have the budget to do so. The reality for SMEs is quite different. This type of monitoring is only possible through outsourcing, by hiring an administered service provider.

Imagine an alert situation in terms of disk usage on the server, with several machines on the network running simultaneously read and write processes and thus exceeding average usage levels. The alert can be sent by e-mail or even by SMS. But if no one is there to personally control this surveillance and to act, it might be too late.

Regardless of the profile and internal organization of your business, it is important to keep in mind that our world is increasingly connected. Depending on how they are used and managed, network technologies have their advantages and disadvantages. Not only do they facilitate the day-to-day management of business and business needs, but they also serve as a royal route for the proliferation of threats to varying degrees. It’s up to you to decide how important it is to ensure the security of your data and therefore your business.

Azhar Iqbal, with more than 15 years of programming experience, posses a firm command over system analysis, system design and custom software solutions. He envisioned utilizing his extensive experience and expertise to elucidate Telephony Applications Development and design more practical solutions. You can reach him through his website Ranking Solutions or LinkedIn Profile.